Day 1 – Your Fairy Art Parents

It’s Day 1! Let’s get started!

After we finish these five days, you will have a really strong sense of why you’re writing.

  • What you SHOULD be writing.
  • What your SHOULDN’T be writing.
  • WHO your role models and mentors are
  • How to stay on track and truly BELIEVE that you are a writer and you should be doing this work.

Over the next 5 days we’re going to create your ‘Writer’s Manifesto’, a document that will help you understand why writing matters to you and what you want to bring into the world, through you creativity.

It acts as a decision-filter for the way you work on every scene, every story, every piece.

Two Examples

When I was procrastinating on revisions to a story, I wasn’t sure what was wrong. Then I looked at my Writer’s Manifesto and realized that the cynical little story I had drafted didn’t match my goals for me, as a writer and human.

That realization freed me to let that draft go, and work on something better…which came much more easily.

Likewise, in trying to write a scene in my novel, it kept trending to a tone that didn’t match what I had written as my aspirations for my work. Remembering that allowed me to find a better tone for the scene, which then flowed better, because I believed in it more.

STEP 1 OF YOUR MANIFESTO


We start by figuring out who we admire, as creative — who are our ‘Fairy Art Parents’…

TASK


Write a list of creative people you admire and what attracts you to them.

Don’t spend too long on this.

For example, I wrote:

Amanda Palmer. For her commitment to making the art that only she can make and for finding ways to get paid for it. outwith traditional structures. And for her commitment to openness.

Mary Robinette Kowal science fiction, fantasy author, whose pursuit of the craft of writing and storytelling is detailed and, logical. For her willingness to share that with others and to keep on turning out her own work and building an audience at the same time.

Nick Stevenson for what I call his calculated openheartedness, the way that he communicates with his readers.

Kim Stanley Robinson for his unique style and optimism.

Neil Gaiman for the same things, and for the literary family tree that he grew out of.

Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams for their quirky style, their humor, their big ideas and for the fact that what I get from them. I can only get from them.

WRITE YOUR LIST

  • So write down your list of people who inspire you, writers, artists, creative types.
  • And then write down what it is that each of those people. What you admire about them and the way that they do business.

Today’s is a tiny task, but it lays the foundation for the really important process that we’re going through this week.

We’ll be back tomorrow to take the next step with this list that you’re making today.

Who did you pick as your Fairy Art Parents. Leave a comment and let us know!

Keep writing,

Julie (signed)

P. S. Have a friend who should be going through this challenge with you? Send them a link to sign up at storyaday.org/jan-challenge

2023 Day 8 Check in

A vlog about how my StoryADay May is going…

Today’s prompt is here

Week 1 is a wrap!

Today I was pretty happy with the very short story I wrote. When I got to the end I discovered something interesting, which I share in this video.

Also: now’s a great time to assess what went well last week and what you’ll keep/do differently during this coming week of the challenge (I talk about this, too, in this video)

Keep writing,

Julie

2023 Day 7 Check in

A vlog about how my StoryADay May is going…

Today’s prompt is here

Week 1 is a wrap!

Today I wrote badly and learned some things. I also got to hangout with the StoryADay Superstars and talk about writing, and it was moving, and inspired.

Hey you: if you’re reading this and writing at all: you’re pretty unusual and you’re pretty amazing.

Keep writing,

Julie

5 Days In May

Catch up with the first week of StoryADay May 2023 through the experiences of founder and writer, Julie Duffy

On this episode of the podcast I update you on how my StoryADay challenge is going this year, in the hopes that I’ll inspire you to get or keep going too!

Subscribe to the daily series here: http://stada.me/2023lives

00:00 StADa287 Five Days In May
01:14 D
04:40 Day 2
09:56 Day 3
13:41 Day 4
17:26 Day 5
21:21 Wrap up

And finally a remainder that know you can support this podcast, if you would like to, which some people have asked me about and to do that, you go to glow.fm/storyaday, and you can make a one-time or recurring donation to keep the show going. And I really appreciate your support. That’s it from me this week. Happy writing. And I’ll see you again soon.

Transcript available here

2023 Day 3 Check in

A vlog about how my StoryADay May is going…

Today’s prompt is here

I found today’s prompt challenging, perhaps because I was feeling the pressure to write about something weighty and important, which made me feel intimidated and stuck. But then I remembered my collection of Story Sparks, and I found inspiration in a personal experience that I gave to a different character.

I decided to write the story in third person and present tense to make it more experiential for the reader. This was different from what I had been writing the past couple of days, which were more narrative in form.

Through this experience, I was reminded of the importance of just getting started with writing. Even though parts of the prompt made me resist at first, I found that I had unknowingly incorporated them into my story.

Trusting yourself as a storyteller and putting words on the page, even if they feel choppy or imperfect, can lead to magic in your writing.

So, don’t fret about finding the perfect topic or having everything planned out. Just start writing and let the interesting stuff happen. Nobody needs to see it, and you might just end up with a big, stupid grin on your face like I did.

Keep writing, and stay tuned for tomorrow’s prompt on keeping things short!

2023 Day 2 Check in

A vlog about how my StoryADay May is going…

Day two of the challenge and I’m feeling great.

But, I made the classic mistake of not planning ahead, so I spent the first half hour doing admin instead of writing. I’m going to fix that tomorrow by planning my morning better.

The prompt today was from Mary Robinette Kowal:

“What’s in your character’s pocket?”

I used characters from my work in progress and wrote a self-contained story that I can later use as a scene in my novel. Other participants are using the challenge to push forward their work in progress in various ways.

What will YOU do?

Rachel Swearingen Interview Part 2

^^^ Watch (captions available)

Need the transcript?

˅˅˅ listen (mp3)

This time we talk about her favorite stories of her own and the writers she admires, working in short fiction now. We also talk about the importance of community for writers, and then Rachel turns the tables on me!

(You can find Part 1 of this interview, here)

Rachel Swearingen is the author of “How to Walk on Water and other short stories” which received the New American Press Fiction Prize. 

LINKS

This episode: storyaday.org/episode283

Rachel’s site: rachelswearing.com

Sign up for StoryADay May: http://storyaday.org/signup

Support the podcast: glow.fm/storyaday

Rachel Swearingen Intervew – on Writing

In this conversation with award-winning writer Rachel Swearingen we talk about how to build a writing practice that grows with you, the art of writing short and long fiction the importance of play, her residency in Berlin and about some of her short stories and how they came to be written.

^^^ Watch (captions available)

Need the transcript?

˅˅˅ listen (mp3)

Next time we’ll talk about her favorite stories of her own and the writers she admires, working in short fiction now. We also talk about the importance of community for writers, and then Rachel turns the tables on me!

Rachel Swearingen is the author of “How to Walk on Water and other short stories” which received the New American Press Fiction Prize. 

LINKS

This episode: storyaday.org/episode282

Rachel’s site: rachelswearing.com

Sign up for StoryADay May: http://storyaday.org/signup

Support the podcast: glow.fm/storyaday

Creative Rebellion – Episode 275

Join us as we talk about building a productive writing practice, no matter what…..

It’s an end-of-year episode with a twist (hint: don’t want to set New Year’s Resolutions? Join the rebellious crowd!)

Listen to the Audio

Full transcript here

Watch the video

Watch video with full transcript here

LINKS:

LINKS:

More Writing Help

StoryADay Short Story Framework

Download the free Short Story Framework and write today, not ‘some day’. Go from ‘idea’ to ‘the end’ without getting lost along the way!

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Weekly writing prompts and lessons in your inbox, every Wednesday with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

StoryaDay 3-Day Challenge

Take the 3-Day Challenge and write three short stories this weekend!

Where’s My Butler? An Interview with Mary Robinette Kowal about the writing life – Part 2

Join us as we talk about building a productive writing practice, no matter what…..

My conversation continues, with award-winning author Mary Robinette Kowal as we discuss her new novel The Spare Man and the art of writing even in the face of challenges. Don’t miss it!

Listen to the Audio

Watch the video

Watch video with full transcript here

LINKS:

LINKS:

More Writing Help

StoryADay Short Story Framework

Download the free Short Story Framework and write today, not ‘some day’. Go from ‘idea’ to ‘the end’ without getting lost along the way!

StoryAWeek logo

Weekly writing prompts and lessons in your inbox, every Wednesday with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

StoryaDay 3-Day Challenge

Take the 3-Day Challenge and write three short stories this weekend!

An Interview with Mary Robinette Kowal about writing “The Spare Man” – Part 1

Join us as we talk about writing, cocktails and the art of writing what you don’t know…

Murder! Cocktails! Adorable service dogs!

Award-winning author Mary Robinette Kowal comes to the StoryADay podcast to discuss her new novel The Spare Man and the art of writing books you’d actually want to read. Don’t miss it!

Listen to the Audio

Watch the video

Watch video with full transcript here

LINKS:

LINKS
MaryRobinette.com
Mary Robinette Kowal’s Patreon
My Favorite Bit (10 best Fantine curses) 

More Writing Help

StoryADay Short Story Framework

Download the free Short Story Framework and write today, not ‘some day’. Go from ‘idea’ to ‘the end’ without getting lost along the way!

StoryAWeek logo

Weekly writing prompts and lessons in your inbox, every Wednesday with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

StoryaDay 3-Day Challenge

Take the 3-Day Challenge and write three short stories this weekend!

It’s Annual Review Time!

Don’t be afraid!

it’s that time of year when you’re supposed to make goals, but how to do it without getting bored, scared, disappointed or terrified? I have some thoughts…

Listen to the Audio

LINKS:

Never miss an episode: Subscribe to the Podcast

Link to this episode: https://storyaday.org/episode272

Join the discussion in the Serious Writers’ Accountability Group (SWAGr)

Need something to help you get closer to your purpose while setting or assessing your goals?

Get the Annual Planning Bundle

Read the accompanying article

Get writing prompts and lessons in your inbox every week with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

Annual Planning Bundle

Download the Annual Planning Bundle and always know your next, smallest step as you chase your writing goals.

Goals are Disruptive

This simple phrase changed everything for me, this week.

This was a massive (and kinda obvious) disruption to my thought processes this week. It goes deeper than simple fixes, but is much more likely to have a real impact on your writing life…and your quality of life. Enjoy!

Listen to the Audio

Watch the video

LINKS:

Never miss an episode: Subscribe to the Podcast

Link to this episode: https://storyaday.org/episode269

Join the discussion in the Serious Writers’ Accountability Group (SWAGr)

Need something to help you get closer to your purpose while setting or assessing your goals?

Get the Keep Writing Workbook

Get writing prompts and lessons in your inbox every week with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

Download the Keep Writing Workbook and always know your next, smallest step as you chase your writing goals.

What Do You Do in The Pause?

I wrote this story on the blog this week, but in this week’s podcast you get a more complete version, along with some thoughts about what to do if you’re In The Pause

I wrote this story on the blog this week, but in this week’s podcast you get a more complete version, along with some thoughts about what to do if you’re In The Pause

Listen to the Audio

Watch the video

LINKS:

Get the Keep Writing Workbook

Get writing prompts and lessons in your inbox every week with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

Download the Keep Writing Workbook and always know your next, smallest step as you chase your writing goals.

Preparing for NaNoWriMo?

Everyone you know seems to be preparing for National Novel Writers’ Month. Are you?

I’ve done a few challenges in my time (from StoryADay to NaNoWriMo) and I have some questions for you about how you’re preparing and what you’ll do instead-of/as-well-as outlining to sustain you through the month.

Listen to the Audio

Watch the video

LINKS:

Get the Creative Challenge Workbook

Save The Cat Writes A Novel, Jessica Brody

Dan Wells’s 7-Point Story Structure

Romancing The Beat, Gwen Hayes

(some of these links are Amazon affiliate links, but you should feel free to look for these books wherever you like to buy/borrow books.

Join the Critique Week Waitlist

Get writing prompts and lessons in your inbox every week with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

P. S. Want to read about That Time I Met NaNoWriMo Founder Chris Baty, and how, sometimes, doing a scary thing turns out to be wonderful?

Who Do You Listen To?

In which I tell you what my critique partners said about my latest pages…

Listen to the Audio

Watch now

Watch the video

It’s dangerous to allow rejections, acceptances, marketing budgets or any other business-related nonsense to determine your worth as a writer.

So who should you be listening to? In this episode, I have some thoughts…

LINKS
StoryADay Critique Week: https://stada.me/critique

LINKS:

QR Code for stada.me/critique

Join us in Critique Week

Take the 3-Day Challenge

Get writing prompts and lessons in your inbox every week with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

Soaring

How to soar in your writing life…and as a result, the WHOLE of your life.

Listen to the Audio

Watch now

What do you need to do to help you soar in your writing life? Join me for a Lesson in Creative Thermodynamics!

LINKS:

See the illustration and leave a comment on the Lesson In Creative Thermodynamics

Take the 3-Day Challenge

Endlessly Inspired

This week we take a look at the publishing industry, your goals, and how you can become endlessly inspired and creative…

Learning about the realities of the publishing industry can free you to create your own definition of success (that may or may not include traditional publishers). Step 1 towards success is to imagine your vision. Step 2 is to turn up for your writing, something the new StoryAWeek newsletter can help with!

For industry perspective: Jane Friedman’s The Hot Sheet: https://hotsheetpub.com/

Leave a comment about this episode: https://storyaday/episode259

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A Writer’s Vacation

This week I talk about the  creative boost I got from my recent travels, and how you can get a similar boost in your writing life, without even leaving home.

This week I talk about the  creative boost I got from my recent travels, and how you can get a similar boost in your writing life, without even leaving home.

I also tease some of the upcoming events at StoryADay as we look towards the change in seasons.

Want more?

Join me at the Writer Unboxed OnConference 2022: https://writerunboxed.com/2022/08/05/writer-unboxed-onconference-community-focus/

Get the StoryADay Short Story Framework: https://storyaday.org/framework